Gridserve breaks ground at Gatwick Airport

Gridserve has broken ground on its so-called latest Electric Forecourt amidst “multiple global headwinds,” so CEO Toddington Harper. Once completed in 2023, the new high-power charge hub will enable 36 EVs to be charged simultaneously with up to 350 kW.

Gridserve planned the new ultra-rapid charging site at Gatwick Airport from the start and said it was the first airport to receive such a site today. It is the third such Electric Forecourt. One is open at Braintree in Essex; another is scheduled in Norwich. At the same time, Gridserve pledged in 2019 to open 100 Electric Forecourts in the UK by 2025, and it appears they have some way to go.

Indeed, Toddington Harper, CEO of Gridserve, said timelines were “not without their challenges due to multiple global headwinds” at the ceremony in Gatwick.

Nevertheless, the company broke ground on the Ring Road South approach to Gatwick’s South Terminal and adjacent to the M23.

Once installed, the new high-power chargers can add 100 miles of range in less than 10 minutes.

The site will be supplied by 100% renewable energy generated by Gridserve’s hybrid solar farms, which are part of the installations.

Gridserve said it has also received planning permission for more sites, including Uckfield, Gateshead, Plymouth and Bromborough.

Electric Highway built-out faster

Gridserve has made more progress on the Electric Highway charging network at Moto rest stops. The partners inherited a longstanding partnership since Gridserve acquired Ecotricity’s network in June 2021. Since the acquisition, Gridserve says it has invested “tens of millions of pounds” to develop the new Electric Hubs and replace the 300+ existing AC motorway chargers it took from Ecotricity. The company reported completing the upgrade in April this year.

In today’s statement, Gridserve added they delivered eight additional High Power Electric Super Hubs, each featuring six to twelve 350kW-capable chargers. More Electric Super Hubs will open in the coming months, including Reading, Woolley Edge, and Leigh Delamere.

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